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The Leaf is the gateway to a brave new electric world from Nissan. Forget the Mitsubishi i-MiEV and Mini E, and even the dorky G-Wiz. The five-seater Leaf is the world’s first, purpose-built mass-produced electric car.

And it could very well be a defining moment in automotive history on the way to cleaning up emissions and weaning us off fossil fuels. As it’s purpose-built, the Leaf employs its own unique platform and body that meet all C-segment safety regulatio...Read the full article

 Its odd that the report says in the flesh it has a short nosed front end, in the pictures it certainly looks to have a pretty substantial front overhang.

This is only as eco-friendly as the power stations that power it: and then there is the additional environmental impact of production to consider (thinking especially of the batteries). For the cost of one of these, I could get myself a nice, tidy E38 BMW 750i, possibly swap out the autobox for a manual, and run my 20mpg barge around, knowing that I was still doing more for the environment than these sanctimonious hippies in their Priuses and Leafs and Insights and suchlike. Oh, and I'd have a hell of a lot of change.

Here Here!!!! There is an argument to say an H2 Hummer is better for the environment than a Nissan Leaf! (and its quite a convincing argument as well!!!)

Vidge 123:

Here Here!!!! There is an argument to say an H2 Hummer is better for the environment than a Nissan Leaf! (and its quite a convincing argument as well!!!)

 

Well, that's probably pushing things... and I wouldn't be seen dead in a Hummer of any description.

EVs are coming whether we like the earliest ones or not. And the Leaf would seem to be a genuine attempt to create a workable commercially-viable EV with as few compromises as is possible using current battery technology.

We all know oil is a finite resource; we should also all know that a car-based engine is far less efficient at converting that energy than a large power station. There's equal pressure on improving that conversion efficiency and on improving battery technology to the point where an EV and a conventional car become directly comparable.

In the meantime, please can I have an electric car that's decent to drive but one that also has a small on-board petrol/diesel powered generator for range extension so that I only need one car for everything still?  Lotus seems to have the right idea here: cruising needs only comparatively few kW.

Straight Six Man:

This is only as eco-friendly as the power stations that power it: and then there is the additional environmental impact of production to consider (thinking especially of the batteries). For the cost of one of these, I could get myself a nice, tidy E38 BMW 750i, possibly swap out the autobox for a manual, and run my 20mpg barge around, knowing that I was still doing more for the environment than these sanctimonious hippies in their Priuses and Leafs and Insights and suchlike. Oh, and I'd have a hell of a lot of change.

But your 20mpg barge will never reduce its emissions. We have the technology and ability to reduce our CO2 emissions from power stations (which is already significantly lower than using an internal combustion engine - power stations are far more efficient). If we make a proper move towards nuclear and/or renewable we can reduce our CO2 from electricity production to near zero - making the running of this vehicle almost CO2 free. Tell me another way of managing that? Add to that zero tailpipe emissions and you have a perfect city and suburbs vehicle. I think the car looks alright, the styling is nothing special, but then very few cars are right now. More interesting is that it's good to drive, looks spacious (although I noticed you can't fold the rear seats down) AND it's a proper effort that's going to sell - unlike previous attempts. This is just the start, it won't be for everyone, but give it time.

As i see it, the range issue is the only real problem with this car. Even as a commuter or city car, it removes the possibility of doing something spontaneous and just going for a long drive when you feel like it, thus killing the whole point of having a car, imo. Cars that have range extenders, like the Volt, seem to me a better solution.

 

Vidge 123:

There is an argument to say an H2 Hummer is better for the environment than a Nissan Leaf!

I'm sure there there is.

There are also arguments to say that Elvis didn't die, that the moon is made of cheese and that the earth is flat.

I think these EV cars can suit certain users very well. However, for about half of the journeys I, and many other people make a 2nd, more conventional car, is still needed. That's not very 'green'.

 anyone want to try and calculate how much my electric bill is gonna be if i run one of these things?the fact is that they still use fossil fuels, it does'nt really matter wether it's at the beginning or the end,and on a much bigger picture,these vehicles are never gonna make a difference to the world coz of the amount of cars now(and planning to be)on the road in India and China and all the other developing countries that don't give a monkies about co2 levels.

The Leaf's battery has a capacity of 24kWh. Assuming a worst case that you manage to completely discharge it, and a worst case charge efficiency of 80%, then it'll cost you 30kWh of electricity to fully charge it. The cheapest electricity tariff available to us currently charges 8p per kWh, so that means a worst case of £2.40p to do a full charge.

The fact that China and India are about to explode in terms of car ownership is all the more reason to look for alternative means of fuelling your car - noticed what happens to our fuel prices when the American driving holiday season starts? Now multiply by that by the demand of all the new Chinese and Indian drivers.